If I Could Do It Again
by Usagi Youkai
Summary: Seto and Joey adopt two orphans from Seto's old orphanage. They learn raising kids and teaching them to trust is harder than they expected, Joey x Seto
1. Escape Plan

If I Could Do It Again

I've had this idea for a while since I couldn't really think of a reason for Seto to get pregnant. Sure the Egyptian magic like that would be a good excuse, but then my imagination took over and I liked it even more :D

Warnings: Joey/Seto, which means the two are in a relationship, but its not straight out of high school, they've matured and have been with each other for a bit, ups and downs evening out into an even flow. Ocs; I've added some original characters, but don't be scared! They're not Mary Sues.

Prologue:

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A young boy of about 9 bit his lip in the darkness, watching his sister move around the bed, working on tying the sheets together tight. He sat cross legged, hands on his ankles, his dark brown hair mussed up from sleeping only a couple minutes before. His sister was about 12 with short cut dirty blond hair, she seemed determined to get the sheets tied tight.

"Don't worry, Peter," She said confidently, pulling the knot tight on one sheet, and then testing to see if it was tight enough. "We'll get out of here this time." She was satisfied with the last knot and gathered a large bundle of sheets together in her arms, every foot or so, an uneven knot tied. "Then we'll live off the land and find a circus ta join," She threw the bundle of sheets out an open window and looked over the sill, watching it flutter down into a long rope, the other end tied to one of the rickety mettle framed beds, that squeaked every time you moved. "Then I'll be a lion trainer and you can be a clown." Peter made a face and the girl, Tessa, looked at him "Hey, clowns are very important, don't squash the idea before you try it."

Tessa pulled on the sheets to make sure it would stay, and then swung her leg out the window. Peter's eyes widened and he made an alarmed sound, making his sister look back at him. "Come on Pete, it's the only way out. That bitch is always locking the doors, so we just got to climb out." Tessa looked back out the window, where she was on the third floor. Peter gingerly got up and went over to the window, resting his hands on the sill. Tessa grinned at him. "Don't worry, look here," She pulled up the end of the sheets and showed him she was tying it around her middle. "See, if I slip, I won't hit the ground, and I won't get hurt." Peter still looked uncertain, but his sister ignored the worried gaze, swinging her other leg over the sill, holding onto the sheets tight.

"When I get down, do the same as me" She said, maneuvering so that she turned around, sliding down the wall; only holding onto the sheet and window sill. "We'll be out of here in no time." Peter only watched helplessly as she slowly scaled down the wall, her shoes slipping against the chipped painting on the building a few times, but she eventually made it to the brown patched grass safely. Only then did Peter let out the breath he'd been silently holding. Tessa quickly untied her self and quickly fashioned a slip loop so her brother could tie himself the same way she had. Hesitantly, Peter dragged the rope back up and secured the sheets around him like his sibling did and slowly climbed down. When he was almost to the bottom, Tessa caught him in her arms and helped him down, untying him as soon as his feet touched down.

They were both quiet for a minute, listening for anything. But they heard nothing, and Tessa grinned at her brother.

"See, told ya so" She said happily, giving a victory sign "We're as good as--"

"Grounded, Miss. Tessa" Both children jumped, turning around to looking in the face of a rather wrinkly old woman. The old woman scowled, and it was twice as scary to the kids as it would be to an adult.

"M-Mrs. Dosh" Tessa stuttered "We- er, we were just..."

"You were just trying to run away when you are supposed to be sleeping." The old woman scoffed, waving a rolled up news paper dangerously in Tessa's face, "Dirty little vix, this is the 5th time this week you've tried to run, now get back inside before I get the paddle." Tessa stood her ground as the paper was waved in her face, and for its flimsy look, she knew the woman could make it hurt, but she glared coldly back at Mrs. Dosh. Peter clang to his sister's waist, his face buried in her shirt. Mrs. Dosh soon grew impatient and whacked Tessa's back, making her jump forward, heading quickly towards the door, ushering her brother in front of her so he was shielded from any whack that the woman would make at them. Mrs. Dosh followed them and shut the door to the building harshly, a wooden sign on the door clanking from the vibration. The sign was scuffed and the once professional carved letters were scratched and worn away by the elements. It read: "Domino Orphanage"

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Hope you liked the fist chapter, please review 


	2. Memories of Long Ago

Second chapter, we finally have Joey and Seto. Please tell me if I do anything too weird in the process of adopting, I don't really have much information on it and am going off what I've seen on TV. But please don't be too criticizing, this is suppose to be fan fiction, not politically correct.

Enjoy

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"Would you sit down?" Seto hissed out of the corner of his mouth, eyes on the road, but he glanced at the blonde man beside him every so often. Joey grinned at the brunet, who was currently driving his new black car, brand new custom made with every modern convenience one could ask for. A small part of Joey was always a bit envious when Seto bought everything brand-spanking-new, but it was only in spurts, the rest of the time he would just take advantage of it and enjoy it when Seto would not; like now, he was kneeling in the passenger seat and half of him was hanging out the window, yelling happily to all the people; all passer bys gave him strange looks, but he didn't care, the wind in his face was too much fun. 

Seto grabbed the back of Joey's jeans and yanked him back in the car, the blonde giving a startled sound before he landed in the seat in the correct way.

"Put your seat belt on, I don't need you're head going through the new window." Seto snapped, casting a soft but scolding glare at the other. Joey just smiled and grabbed the belt to his right.

"Oh, lighten up, you should be excited too," the blonde said and the belt clicked into place, "I mean, how often do you get to adopt a kid?" Seto glanced at the other man, and then turned his piercing blue eyes to the roads of Domino once again. Joey was expecting some kind of remark from the brunet, but Seto said nothing. He opened his mouth again, and then shut it again; remembering Seto was a bit testy about adoption.

"I should have told Mokuba to do this." Seto grumbled; his brother was much better with children.

"Mokuba had classes today," Joey informed him, "Besides, if you're looking for a successor, I would think you would pick them out yourself." Seto grumbled something that was not meant to be audible and turned at the next light, a bright red Jaguar cutting past them, causing Seto to slam on his breaks and curse. Joey yelped, his seat belt keeping him from smashing his thick skull into the windshield. Seto rubbed his temples and Joey popped his head out of the window, shaking his fist angrily at the young teenagers.

"Learn how to drive, jackass!" He yelled and slipped back into the car, looking at Seto, who had his eyes closed and was concentrating on his breathing, pinching the bridge of his nose. Joey rested a hand on Seto's shoulder, but Seto didn't react. "You ok, Seto?" Seto took in a shaky breath and opened his eyes, seeing his other hand was gripping the steering wheel tightly. He loosened his grip and felt the muscles in his hand relax. God, he hated that.

"I'm fine, I'm fine," Seto said under his breath and collected his nerves, pressing his foot on the gas peddle again, accelerating slowly. Seto couldn't help but get flash backs still of years ago, back before dueling, before becoming to be the CEO of Kaiba Corp, before even the time of being orphaned. Joey watched Seto a while without wavering eyes and Seto glanced at the blonde a couple times, not like being stared at. "What?" he asked; sounding irritated. Joey just gave a knowing look and Seto looked away, back to the road. He didn't like that look; that look that meant Joey knew what he was thinking.

Joey then leaned over, kissing Seto's cheek, startling the CEO at first, eyes having been on the road. Even 6 years with being with the blonde, he was still jumpy from these unexpected moments in public; even though the windows were tinted and nobody was really looking, that cautiousness around people still stuck with him.

"I can drive if you want, Seto." Joey offered.

"I'm fine," Seto said with a firmer tone and let out a breath that might have been there since the close call, "Idiot kids..." Seto was 25 now and Joey was just as old. He glanced at the blonde's apparel, the scare causing him to remember things. He was glad Joey had some presentable clothes on instead of his ripped knee jeans and old ratty jacket. He had newer blue jeans on and a clean, unstained green shirt. Joey had even allowed his mop of hair to be thinned out, easier to manage and it got less tangled.

They arrived at their destination without much incident, though Joey did have fun with the surround sound stereo buttons until Seto got sick of Rock-n-Roll and shut it off. He mused that Joey had never grown up since he was 10.

Stepping out of his car, Seto paused, hand resting on the open door, staring at the old discrepant looking building. His black slacks and dark dress shirt ruffled in the wind and a shiver crawled up his spine. He shut the door and stepped onto the colorfully chalk covered side walk; funny, he could remember doing that activity with Mokuba when they were stuck in this rat hole.

Joey watched his lover and stepped around the car to be beside him. Seto had calmed his cold appearance down over the years, but he did still intimidate people at first glance. Joey knew now was not the time to make the situation awkward with worry so he grinned and hooked his arm with Seto's.

"Come on Seto! We actually have to step onto the property." He snickered and dragged the brunet with him past the chain linked fence; Seto stumbling at first from the unexpected pull forward, but he got his balance back soon enough and followed Joey at a slower pace. Joey reached the door and checked out the worn out sign, making sure it was the place. Seto let his eyes gaze over the land, and it was the same as he left it 15 years ago. The patchy brown grass, the creaky swing set, the jungle gym that looked ready to collapse, and the sand box that was more mud than sand. He reached Joey's side and the blonde grinned, tracing under the visible letters of "Domino Orphanage".

"Ready?" the blonde asked, and Seto just nodded, his throat dry at the moment, he didn't feel as if he could speak. He'd let Joey do all the talking for once; at least one of them was happy to be there. Joey rapped on the door with the back of his hand, not finding the place discouraging, he'd lived in a neighborhood like this most of his life, and this actually looked like one of the nicer places. After a minute, which felt like an eternity to Seto, the door opened and an old woman with stringy white hair answered. Joey and Seto observed that she only came to their chests in height with large gawky glasses pressed up against the bridge of her nose and an old flowery dress that looked as is it could be doubled at a night gown.

"Yes?" the woman asked, as pleasantly as possible, though they could catch the tint of aggravation in her voice.

"Uh, hey," Joey said and smiled, assuming this was the caretaker of the children, "Mrs. Dosh?"

"Yes," The woman replied, "May I help you?" Joey gestured to himself and Seto.

"Joey Wheeler and Seto Kaiba, we're here to look at the kids." The blonde explained and Mrs. Dosh seemed to brighten.

"Oh yes, I remember talking to you on the phone, Mr. Kaiba." The woman opened the door and ushered them in, making adjustments to her apparel and hair in an attempt to make her self more presentable. Inside it was actually a tad cozier than outside. The floors were clean except for the occasional toy that was on the ground. "Come, come, we'll discuss this in my office." She led them to a door not too far away and it reminded Joey of a school office with a large window on the side to watch what was going on. They entered and she shut the door behind them, then she took up a seat behind a school teacher sized desk, and gestured to 2 of 3 chairs in front of the desk, which the two men took, deciding to get down to business.

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Please review 


	3. It Starts

Next 2 chapters typed and beta-ed

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"-bratty, stanky, stiff, rotten, old hag…" Tessa growled angrily as she scrubbed the floor angrily, suds bubbling up under the stiff brush as she took out her anger on the stained floor of the bedroom. "Keeping us here and treating us like slaves. Dirty, wrinkled, freckled bat…" Peter looked as his sister a mop taller than he was in his hands, mopping up the extra suds. The blonde glanced at him, seeing the look of 'I told you so'.

"Ok, ok so it was a bad plan, we'll be prepared next time. Then we won't be scrubbing floors no more." She dropped the brush back in the bucket and it splashed slightly. She sighed and stretched her stiff muscles. "This sucks…" She heard a bunch of the other orphans run outside he hall, and out of curiosity, she got up and went over to the doorframe. "Hey," she said, stopping one of the older boys, they knew more than the little ones, "Where's the fire?"

"There are some grown ups here looking for kids," The boy said excitedly, "Everyone's getting cleaned up to try to get picked." Then the boy ran off again towards the bathroom. Tessa looked to Peter, and there was a questioning gaze in his brown eyes. The blonde girl smiled.

"I have another plan," she said and it only took Peter a moment to figure it out, his eyes widening and he shook his head rapidly. "Oh come on! It'll be easier if we escape from a bunch of stupid grown ups than Mrs. Bat-Brain." Peter shook his head harder; he knew what she was planning. But his sister wouldn't listen; she grabbed his wrist and dragged him to the bathrooms, causing her brother to drop the mop, the handle clanging on the now clean wood floor.

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"Well then, all the legal work is in order," Mrs. Dosh said, tapping the small stack of papers on her desk to make them neater. She set the papers down and looked at the two men. Joey was smiling freely and Seto sat rigid in his chair, "You may have any pick of child here, and can stay as long as you want to make your decision. The children should be groomed by now."

Groomed; Seto mused, remembering how every kid use to rush to prepare for a chance to be adopted, it was competition over soap and clothes, he never wished to go through it again.

Joey glanced at the window and saw the large eyes of children from little kids to preteens peeking in. He grinned and waved, and as soon as he did, they scurried away with giggles and sheiks of surprise. Discouraged for the first time he glanced at Seto, who sat nearly silent for the whole time except for answering a couple questions and signing a couple papers.

Mrs. Dosh ushered them out and they only caught the glimpse of a couple kids disappearing out the front door. They also followed outside and Joey's eyes widened at all the kids gathered. Some played on the old play sets, others were grouped together. Least to say he was a bit overwhelmed. How in the world was someone to pick between all these kids? He leaned closer to Seto, eyes still on the kids, he mumbled.

"I hope you have an idea of what you want." Joey said

"Intelligence, focus, and determination." Seto listed the qualities he was looking for. Joey let out a low whistle.

"Good luck." Was all Joey said and Seto sighed, talking a step forward, exploring the grounds that he hadn't seen for years.

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	4. The Game

"Holy cow," Tessa said as she peeked through the chain link fence at the black car, her small fingers entangled in the wiring as she looked that the vehicle. She glanced at Peter who looked back at her, his hands grasping the fencing also, "These people must be loaded, just look at their car!" Peter gave an unsure look. "I'm positive it'll work this time, come on." She left the fence, her brother following her quietly. She ignored the adults and went over to the board box that held all the board games. She knelt down and shifted through the box; there was monopoly backgammon, chess… Peter watched over her shoulder and she finally found what she'd been looking for. She grinned and pulled out the folded up black and red board. Peter sighed and shook his head and Tessa gave him a look of annoyance. "Would you quit that, it'll work, I know it will." Peter looked ever doubtful, but Tessa ignored the doubt. If she didn't try, she couldn't win.

The blonde girl stood and went to see the potential adopters. She observed the men from a safe distance, where if they saw her, they would have to move closer to speak to her. Peter joined her side, but knew her younger sibling would not approach the adults any further. She saw the blonde man was a cheerful adult, joking with the children that gathered around him. Tessa was weary of adults like that; they could easily turn malicious in seconds. She looked to the brunet of the pair, who watched the blonde man and the children that surrounded him. The slightly taller man had a cold sense to his being that almost made her rethink her own actions and the brunet seemed less trustworthy than the blonde did.

Faintly she wondered why it was two men instead of a man and a woman; that's how couples usually came; hardly ever did people like them show up. The brunet looked like a business man, even without his suit, his straight posture still held fast and the blonde was casual, but well dressed as well. Why would a couple of rich men come to a run down orphanage like this?

She took a deep breath, mentally preparing herself and clutched the game board closer. She was going to do this, she was going to get them out of there; the plan would either scare them away or get them noticed. If they would take notice she would have a good chance to get them adopted. She decided to approach the brunet, he looked more ready to make a deal than the playful blonde. She walked over, but the brunet didn't notice her at first, his focus lingering on the blonde man who was talking to the kids, learning their names and so on, getting to know a couple of them. Tessa glanced at Peter who stayed in his spot, begging her with his hazel eyes not to do it, but she was determined to get them out.

"Hey!" Tessa said loudly, getting everyone's attention around them, the adults' also. The rest of the orphans all knew what she was doing and made mumbles of 'not again' and 'oh geeze'. Tessa ignored them and met ice blue eyes with her own nearly equal blue. "I challenge you to a game of checkers." The brunet man raised an elegant brow and the blonde blinked his eyes at her from within the crowd of kids.

"Oh really?" the tall man asked, she could tell he wasn't taking her seriously with that tone of amusement in his voice; she hated that tone and scowled deeply at him for it.

"Yeah, and if I win, you adopt me and my brother." She said.

Seto stop the corner of his mouth from curling u in an amused smirk, a small chuckle escaping him. This scenario seemed so familiar, like the deal he'd made with Gozaburo; though he had been more civil and crafty in making the old man adopt them. Checkers, ha, such a kid's game. This little girl was so loud and rude; he couldn't possibly consider adopting her.

"I don't think so." He said waving her off and this seemed to tick the girl off more.

"Why?" she challenged, "Are you scared of loosing to a girl?" When he was younger, that might have worked, but Seto was older, more mature than that.

"You wouldn't last long." Seto said, refusing to take any bait that she threw at him.

"I would so!" She stated angrily. Seto snorted apathetically, clear that he found it funny and didn't take her seriously. Joey managed to maneuver from the crowd of children and stood beside Seto, resting a hand on the brunet's shoulder. Seto's eyes shifted to the slightly shorter man, softening ever so slightly; Joey had that effect on him.

"Give it a shot." Joey urged; he doubted that the brunet would loose, but he was curious to see how the girl faired. Seto thought a moment as his eyes lingered on Joey's. He remembered Gozaburo had lost to him in a game of chess because he had underestimated the young brunet. Seto had had his mind set on a boy for adoption, to train him to be a corporate executive, to take over Kaiba Corp. He knew his boundaries though; he wouldn't treat a child like Gozaburo had treated him. The man had made him sleep, breathe and eat calculations and legal documents. He might be the man he is today because of it, but he hated himself before Joey had come along and urged him to trust him. He hated Gozaburo with every fiber of his being.

He supposed he could give the girl a chance, she was quite determined, and who knew, she actually could be an intelligent girl.

"Alright, one game." Seto finally said, eyes flickering back to the blonde girl. The girl looked mildly surprised before she covered it with a smirk.

"Good." She said confidently and ran over to a creaky picnic table by the building, a shady spot in the middle of the day where some of the kids would eat. Seto followed and sat across from her on the old, slightly splintering wood and watched as she set up the board. He noticed some of the pieces were replaced by some buttons or chess pawns. He wasn't surprised really; it was an orphanage full of little children. No doubt the infants either chewed on them or lost them.

"What's your name, girl." Seto asked as she set up the pieces; he might as well know for reference. She didn't even glance at him, setting up her side of the board.

"Tessa," She stated clearly, "My brother is Peter." She glanced into the crowd and Seto tried to follow her gaze, but didn't see any other dirt blonde haired boy that resembled her. Her eyes snapped back to him before he could take a better look, a crowd was already around to watch.

"Who are you?" she asked back; the board was finally set up.

"Kaiba, Seto Kaiba." Seto replied and some of the children began chattering a bit excitedly; no doubt at least a good few of them knew who he was; CEO of Kaiba Corp., the creator of some of the most popular entertainment technology in Japan. Tessa appeared unimpressed and Seto smirked. "Ladies first."

"Age before beauty." The blonde replied and Seto frowned, making the first move. Joey sat beside Seto, watching, but he didn't comment; Seto liked his concentration when he played, whether chess or dueling.

Tessa was fierce in concentration, and got frustrated when a couple of her pieces were gone in the first few turns. Seto was calm; poker face set as he swiftly calculated moves and took her pieces without mercy. When half the pieces were gone he noticed she tried to be tricky instead of straight forward, but Seto knew all the tricks to checkers, even if he hadn't played for a while.

In the end, Seto won, with 5 kings on the board still. The last of Tessa's pieces were cleared off the board with her loss and her eyes were wide in shock, as if in disbelief that she lost. Seto didn't boast there really was no point in mocking the girl; the rest of the children mocked her 10 fold. "Ha! You thought you could beat Kaiba?" "You should give up already, it never works" Tessa huffed at the spiteful words and got off the bench, sour with her defeat.

"You were lucky." She said and pushed past some laughing children, her face red with embarrassment. Seto snorted indignantly and stood. He had to laugh mentally at his previous thought; thinking she had potential. He glanced at Joey who still sat down on the bench, giving a slightly disapproving look. Seto sighed, realizing he should have gone a bit easier on her, but what was done was done and he wasn't forced to adopt anyone.

"Let's finish here already." He said to the other man and Joey nodded, standing up.

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The bed creaked loudly under Tessa's weight as she flopped down on one of the many beds in the bedroom. She stared at the ceiling blankly for a minute before tears started to build up in her blue eyes. She hated being humiliated like that, it was worse than the adults that just turned her down out right. Why is it the only time someone agrees to the deal is she beaten so easy? Kaiba didn't even flinch during the game at all. She angrily let a balled fist fall heavily onto the squeaky bed; she hated being stuck in this orphanage, she hated that old crone and she didn't like any of the other kids there, the acceptance only being Peter. It almost made her wish that she was home…

She shook her head, angry with herself now. No, she didn't want to go home, it wasn't even 'home'. She and Peter had never had a real home, not even with their parents.

Parents, Tessa snorted at the title, biologically yes, but they weren't her parents, never did love them at all.

She was startled when a gentle hand was placed on her arm and her sudden movement caused Peter to retract his hand from her. She sighed and sat up, supporting herself with her arms.

"Its ok Peter, sorry, I kind of ran away on you." She said and Peter just nodded slightly, his way of accepting the apology. Tessa's eyes drifted sadly to the bed and she crossed her arms, resting them on her bent knees. "I'm sorry I didn't win, we're stuck here still." Peter shook his head, as if she'd said something absurd and sat down on the bed also, making the bed creak dangerously. He leaned his shoulder against hers, looking at her straight in the eye. She looked away, hating it when he insisted on eye contact. "Don't worry, I'll get us out of here," a smile crept onto her face and she looked at him, "We'll get to the circus and we'll get you a big red nose." His face nose wrinkled in dislike and she laughed lightly. It was better to turn the worry into fun; she couldn't stand to make Peter worry about her.


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